Top Ten Coolest Timber Frames by VTW (according to Mike)–#5

Up here in Vermont it has finally started to show signs of spring, subtle though those signs may be. Town meeting has come and gone, snowbanks are melting, roofs are clearing, and the days are longer and warmer. I have definitely accepted the fact that Vermont and the rest of New England is like the Marines when it comes to winter, “first in and last out.”

Speaking of New England, our physical address is located right on the Connecticut River. If you drive across the river (technically as soon as you go on the bridge, as the river and all bridges belong to NH) you are in the Granite State. About one hour from our shop is the town of Gilsum, where the headquarters of Badger Balm is located. If you are not familiar with this company, then you need to pick up some of their products–they are the best for natural skin care. Bill Whyte, the founder and Head Badger of Badger Balm, worked with us and with American Construction to build their new factory. I consider this to be the #5 coolest timber frame Vermont Timber Works has built. Check out the rest of The Top 10 Coolest Timber Frames (According To Me) here!

Badger Balm Snow Day

The jobsite was right off of the main drag in town, so getting there every day was no problem. Because of its proximity to our facility we were able to commute from our yard, rather than stay in a local hotel.

The New Badger Mines

There’s our good friend from Lift All Crane company in Westmoreland, NH to help us set the frame. We had some notches to put into these columns before installation. We bring all of our own tools when we set our frames, and there are some very specialized timber frame tools in our trade. Can you see the 16″ beam saw in this picture?

Badger Balm Frame Ready for Assembly

I love how you can see the headache ball’s shadow on the wall behind our crew.

Taking a much deserved lunch break

The picture below was of the office area, which we completed before we turned our attention to phase 2, the warehouse area.

Post and Beams going into wall

The joinery was very simple, and has that industrial aesthetic to it. The species of wood was Douglas fir, and the timbers were all rough sawn.

Close up of some of the joinery

The carpenters from American Construction were right on top of the floor framing and roof framing once we had set our timbers.

Post and beam lower section installed

You can see some of the roof framing down below.

Post and beam frame raised

Here’s a picture of Rick and myself setting one of the heavy beams.

Setting Heavy Beam

When the building was completed, the desired effect of the timbers was apparent, and neatly fit the bill.

Timber Frame warehouse

The front entry of the facility once construction was complete is very welcoming!

Front elevation of Badger Balm facility

Badger Balm has a cafeteria and a dedicated chef for the employees–sounds like a great place to work.

Timber Cafeteria

We look forward to badgering away on many more timber frames in the future (pardon the pun)…

Thanks for stopping by our timber framers’ blog! If you like this frame, or have any timber work questions, we invite you to get in contact, ask an expert, or share your thoughts in the comment section below!